July - 4 weeks Sparking and 20 lbs gone!

Saturday, August 03, 2013

For 11 straight days, I have walked at least 10K steps per day…many times more.

Through fitbit, I have received the 5K, 10K and 15K awards! (Soon I will be trying for the 20K!)

I love keeping track on the calendar as shown here….it’s my cute and fun motivational method:

- The star means no beer (or any other alcohol) for the day….in July I have a 25 day streak and still going strong!
- The smiley face means I tracked my calories for the day AND stayed in range..July I have a 24 day streak and still going strong!
- The Heart means cardio exercises…in July, that meant I walked at a pace which raised my heart rate to what fitbit calls very active…anywhere from 10 minutes to 30 minutes per day…in July, 14 days..as you can see on the calendar, I got much better at the end of the month.

I have discovered Two of my favorite things:

My toaster oven: bakes fish, chicken, kale chips, vegetables, etc….in less time and without heating up the house. I love it! Usually makes my dinner in 20 minutes or less.

The FitBit Flex: Here are many reasons why I love it

1) It is constantly on my wrist…I change clothes many times throughout the day and this way, I can’t forget to clip it on. It’s with me 24/7.
2) FitBit and SparkPeople websites communicate together…I don’t have to worry about entering my steps, miles, etc….it does it automatically for me. SparkPeople transfers my food log to fitbit..what a time saver!
3) FitBits Dashboard report is cute. I try to achieve three goals a day..completing at least 10K steps, burning the recommended amount of Calories and 30 minutes of very active exercise…at the end of the day, I get a HUGE smiley face on each accomplishment…who couldn’t love a smiley face at the end of the day! (Look at my calendar….I LOVE smiley faces!) Now my goal is to add one more smiley face which will be for walking 5 miles min/day. (That’s about 12K steps for me.)
4) Also what I love about fitbit, is they have a graph which compares Calories burned to Calories Eaten….I always make sure that I am burning more calories than I eat (I average 1,200 calories a day.)

So all in all, after 4 weeks, I’m feeling a lot better, more active and motivated. If I wanted to, I can start riding my horse any time…although, I’m holding off until I weigh 220 lbs. (I know at that weight, I’m much more balanced and secure in the saddle) Fall sounds like a great time to start riding again.

Does the fitbit connect with a phone? I no longer have a computer. If it will work with my galaxy 3 then I will get one. Todays blog was so ment for me. I went to a ton of stores for the fitbit yesterday. I need to do more and I believe the fitbit will help me. What you are accomplishing is amazing. Connie in WV150+ to lose SparkTeamLeader

Paula.....I am so freakin' proud of you. 20 pounds is 4 bags of flour gone from your body. Way to go and keep it up girlfriend!!!

I can't wait to restart walking and stepping. I bought a fitbit with a gift card I had. I started to use it before I hurt my foot and got bit from my cat. I was loving it and can't wait to use it again. I like your calendar too. You are so inspirational to me. Thanks!!!